I was blessed with a long weekend and decided to make ample use of my time by cleaning and organizing, particularly the junk room. As my nesting as now seemed to hit full force, any bit of dirt or clutter irritates me to no end. This weekend was the perfect opportunity to give into some of my OCD tendencies by cleaning and organizing, since I would have not only the stamina but the time as well.
First, let's talk about the Junk Room. Everyone has one, whether it's a room, a closet or a drawer. You know, that dark hidden place in your home where all the odds and ends find their final resting place, never to be seen or heard of again. It's the room you put things so you simply don't have to look at them, the place that guests don't see and that is never shown nor talked about outside of the immediate family. Yes, that room.
Well, I'm going against that taboo and revealing our Junk Room to the world - but only because it is no longer a Junk Room. It is now an organized, labeled, spacious area that one might actually want to spend time in. The best part is that this transformation only took me one and a half days from start to finish, meaning that it doesn't actually take a lot of time. I also never lost steam or focus, even after a night's sleep, meaning that it also doesn't take a lot of concentration to do something like this. In short, if I can, then anyone can, and probably better than I did. I've chronicled my journey below with steps and tips that I discovered along the way.
BEFORE:
See, it's awful. Completely horrendous. Despicable. And now you know my dirty little secrets.
STEP 1: Clear the Room
With so much stuff, it was impossible to go through everything and make any sort of progress. For one, there was no space. For two, the room was dirty and needed a serious deep clean. For three, trying to sort and organize in the middle of chaos would not make the chaos go away. Instead, it would be very easy to get frustrated because you're only moving stuff around and not really taking inventory of what's there. By clearing out the room, you have the opportunity to move things into other rooms right away, thus instantly getting rid of some of the clutter. It's also easier to work with a blank slate once the room is cleared because you know exactly how much space you have and what needs to go into that space, making it much easier to put it away.
But you have to clear all of it - cabinets, drawers, closet, etc. I even emptied out the filing cabinet. There were a few exceptions to this in my case, particularly the gigantic "donate" pile that is ever present. There wasn't a need to sort through this (one should never do that - it's how clutter multiplies) and I knew it was going to stay in that room, so there was no sense in moving it out only to move it back in. The other exception was my husband's things, which already had designated and practical areas, so I left it and worked around it.
The biggest thing with this step is that you are simply clearing the room. You are not organizing yet, meaning you should not be going through things like paperwork and files to decide if you're going to keep it. Just get it out of the room. You'll have time to go through things and organize later. This can be very hard to resist, and I found myself doing this a couple times, but it will only sidetrack you and delay the progress.
You can start sorting, however, but very general sorting. Again, you're not organizing, so don't try to plan where things will go or how they will look in the room. The room isn't even empty yet, so it's like trying to decorate a home when the plans aren't drawn and the foundation isn't poured. You'll have time for more specific sorting and organizing, so don't waste your time with it now.
You will find garbage, though, so have a trash bag ready. And you'll also be able to make snap decisions on things to donate. If you already know that something is going to be donated or will live in another room of the house, don't be afraid to get it out of the rest of the clutter. Also, as you're digging through the piles of stuff, be prepared for what you might find, like mouse droppings, big scare spiders, an Ace of Base CD or even worse, cassette...
Take a few moments every once in a while to stand back and admire your progress. This will help keep you motivated as you might realize that you didn't have as much junk as you thought. Once the room is starting to clear out, it's not so scary after all.
Here are the pictures of what the room looked like after everything was cleared out - and temporarily in the downstairs living room.
STEP 2: Clean, Clean, Clean
Once everything is out of the room, grab a vacuum, some baking soda, and a bucket of hot soapy water. Then clean and clean and clean. There is no sense in putting things back into a dirty space. First, I vacuumed - everything. We're in the process of remodeling the basement (yes, still...) so everything was caked in dust and dirt. And it's a basement, so there were nasty cob webs in every corner. Then I wiped down every surface with warm soapy water. Since it's a basement, it tends to smell musty, so I added some natural scent to the water to give a fresh clean smell. Once I was done wiping down all the surfaces, I sprinkled an entire box of baking soda on the carpet and let it sit for about a half hour while I took a break and ate some lunch. Then I vacuumed again, and it smelled much better.
STEP 3: Begin Sorting
Now that you've got the room, you can really begin sorting things into piles. Again - you are not organizing yet, so don't try fit things into bins and spaces. Instead, create piles so you know exactly how much you have. This will also make it easier to decide what things should be grouped together.
Now is when you can finally go through everything, opening files and folders, tearing everything apart. Remember, the goal is to end up with less stuff back in the room than what you took out. Now is when you can take the time to decide what to do with your excess. Here are some guidelines and questions to ask yourself:
1. Do you need it?
A: This is a simply yes or no. There may be things that you never actually use, but still need (like instruction manuals and tax information). If the answer is no, then you can either toss it or donate it.
2. When was the last time you used it? When is the next time you'll use it?
A: These are for the items that are purchase with great intent, but are never actually used. If you find yourself thinking "Oh yeah, I remember this. I was going to do this with it" there should be an alarm going off. Statements like this breed clutter. If you meant to do something with it but haven't yet, then you're not going to. Don't argue, I'm right and you know it. Instead, it's just taking up space and should either be donated or tossed. The golden rule is that if you haven't used it in the last 6 months or year, then it needs to go. Likewise, if you can't think of a time in the near future (like 6 months) when you'll use something again, chance are you won't actually use it, so you might as well get rid of it. Of course, everyone can make their own exceptions to this rule.
3. Will someone else actually use it or is it trash?
A: This is kind of a cryptic message. I am all for donating and second hand and fully believe that one person's trash is another person's treasure. But I also know how "donate" piles can be an angry monster living in your basement (just look at finished pictures if you don't believe me). Is there really use for allowing something to take up space in your home, then hauling it to a second hand store only to have it be discarded there. Don't be afraid to throw things away.
As you'll probably also find a lot of outdated paperwork, it's also a good idea to have a paper shredder and box for recycling handy.
STEP 4: Organizing - with Bins!
You've sorted through all your things and decided what to keep. All of these things are now in neat little piles all over the room, allowing you to get a sense of the amount of space they will take up. Now - grab the bins and start putting things away.
Now would be a perfect time to go purchase storage containers if you haven't done so already. Even if you already have some containers, you may need more or different shapes. This is the most creative and fun part of the organizing process, so be creative when using storage containers. Not everything has to be put into plastic totes. Think outside the tote. When I search for storage, I look everywhere - candles, home decor, garage and outdoor sections, office organization, kitchen accessories and my favorite - dollar sections and second hand stores. I also go for all textures, shapes and colors - wicker, plastic, metal, white, black, bold and patterned. Have fun with it! And if you have an awesome storage container that just isn't the right color, then paint it or cover it with decorate paper (contact paper is awesome for this, by the way). It doesn't matter what your storage looks like because it can be changed. What matters is that it will work for your organizational needs, which is also why it's best to have a variety of shapes and sizes.
This is also the time to start thinking about how the room will be used. For example, our Junk Room was primarily a dumping ground, with the main area for dumping being right inside the door. Instead of trying to change this habit (because it simply wouldn't happen), I organized the room to avoid the clutter. I first moved the large black filing cabinet as it hindered the flow into the room and could be causing part of the dumping. After all, why go around the filing cabinet when I can simply dump stuff in front of it. However, I knew there needed to be containers in that area since it would still be a catch-all, and I needed a table to set those containers on. So I took an old dresser from the laundry room and put it at the entrance where the filing cabinet was. It's low enough to not hinder the flow and provides a great surface. Now not only did I have a surface for the catch-all baskets, I also had extra drawers and storage.
This is also the time to designate zones and areas for certain tasks, like office, bedding, games, photos, etc. You can then designate even further within these zones, like an area for mailing supplies within the office zone. A great way to establish zones is using large shallow trays (see office area below). Also, don't be afraid to put containers within containers. It sounds redundant, but so useful and very pretty.
The best thing is to keep moving and organizing until everything has found a home. You may find yourself moving things from one spot to another and back again, but this is all part of the process. Think of it like putting together a giant puzzle and you're just figuring out how all the pieces fit together.
STEP 5: Labels
It simply doesn't do any good for everything to have it's own place if you can't remember where that place is. This is where the wonderful world of labels come in. You don't have to be crafty to have pretty and sophisticated labels. Sure, you can make your own, or you can print some off the internet like I did.
There are also several ways to attach the labels, the most popular being twine or string. You can also use, things like label holders, key rings or double stick tape (which is what I used).
AFTER:
So much better! It's a room again! With a floor!!
The catch-all area right inside the door - now referred to as inboxes because it sounds way more organized. There are bins for papers and anything else that ends up here. There is also a magazine holder labeled "Jackson's Art" as he brings home art almost every day and previously it was scattered about the room. I knew it would end up in the catch-all area, so instead of putting it in the baskets only to move it to another spot, I put the designated spot within the catch-all area. NOTE: His art will eventually be put into a large binder with clear plastic sheets for protection. That way his art work can be on display with the rest of the photo albums.
Part of the office area (printer, a magazine holder with paper and the paper shredder are to the right). I used shallow baskets to corral all the other containers and designate the zone. See the pictures below for examples of placing containers within containers.
Just because things are hidden in cabinets and closet does not mean they cannot be organized. In the cabinets, I used more bins and baskets to contain like items, keeping things together. Labels on the outside send a reminder to what's hidden inside.
I tried to use the built-ins to my advantage, even though I'm not a big fan of these. There actually isn't a lot on the shelves - compared with before when there wasn't any place to put things. It ended up looking pretty bare and not very appealing, so the unused containers I had became decorations. They take up the visual space and add some color, making the space feel lived in and used instead of like a storage area.
The dresser now holds sheets, pillow cases and other fabrics that can all be in their own space and hidden away. Not only that, with such a large surface, there is room for the computer, the inboxes, and a free space in between.
The labels I used. There are also orange and blue ones. You can print them either with words or blank and write your own descriptions. Very easy to use!
One final note: you can always and should always organize. Don't wait for something. For example, we will be remodeling this room one day and replacing the paneling with actual walls, tearing out the built-ins and moving the closet. But we're not doing it today, and it may be a while before we get to that stage. Likewise, in 5 years, this might be a play room instead of a storage area for office supplies. But today, it's our storage area, so it needs to work for how we live right now. The beauty of organization is that it can always be reorganized. It allows a room to change with you, only in a much easier fashion. Not only can we find things now because everything has a place, we also gained an extra sleeping area that's perfect for a blow-up mattress. We gained a whole other room to our house, and as long as we keep it organized and use it efficiently, then it will always be an extra room in our house instead of being shut behind a door like it doesn't exist.
One more shot of before and after:
It is such a liberating feeling. Not only did I clean out some physical junk, but I also cleaned out some emotional and spiritual junk too. I got rid of this weight of things that had been holding me down. Now I can use my home the way I want to and the way my family needs to.
Happy New Year and Happy Organizing.
